Urban comedies were really hot for a brief period of time between 2002 and early-2003.

I point that out because the original Go For Broke did over one million dollars in video sales when it was released by Artisan in January of 2003. Similar titles, such as Brian Hooks’ Chat Room, did similarly excellent numbers.

Despite the market having slowed down a bit since, Jean-Claude La Marre still decided to make a sequel. Go For Broke 2, which was only written by La Marre, shows that an idea as generic as the one behind Go For Broke really shouldn’t be multiplied.

Yet another interracial friendship gets caught up in the crazy world of cross-dressing and crime as gigantic losers Darnell and John get talked into going out on a date with a rich Texan and a goofy African by wacko lawyer Mouse (La Marre). The plan is for them to steal a diamond worth twenty million dollars, which the African is holding, after showing the two a good time. While Darnell is reluctant to be transformed into Juanita, the two agree after realizing that there’s nowhere their life can go but up. After they’re made-up by an eccentric gay (are there any other in urban films?), they go on a hilarity-lacking date with the two men, as most of the same jokes are just repeated over and over again.

The other side of the film is an odd one. The end of Go For Broke saw Glenn Plummer’s Ramses character being arrested for impersonating a federal employee. Now apparently out of jail, Ramses has found peace and harmony in living a crime-free life. As you’d imagine, he wants no part of Mouse’s plan. But after being fired for allowing two impersonators into his prison system, the thirtysomething C.O. Fader has regressed back into the mentality he had during his army days. Not something like Desert Storm, mind you, but instead Vietnam. He kidnaps Ramses, leading to a whole lot of sequences of the two smoking blunts together. It has nothing to do with the A-plot, and only serves to waste time, but Glenn Plummer can never suck.

Jared Day, who plays Darnell in the movie, brings the movie down a full point or two all by himself. I thought he was great in County General, but here his performance suffers from Day trying to speak ‘hood.’ I’m placing some of the blame on director Myrick, who should have told Jared on the first day of shooting that something needed to be changed. His manner of speaking isn’t even over-the-top annoying. It’s just bad.
DVD: Barebones.

While admittedly not being a connoisseur of gay culture on the account of being on the opposite end of that spectrum and all, I never find it difficult to embrace gay comedies, dramas, or in 10 Attitudes case, dramedies. A pleasant movie made with an ultra thin budget, 10 Attitudes turned out a tad bit different from what I expected.

Unlike the typical gay stereotype trotted out by Hollywood, gay caterer Josh has been a devoted relationship for the past ten years. As far as hes concerned, his beau is the perfect man for him, and their relationship will last for the rest of their lives. But that wouldn’t be entertaining. So of course, within moments, Josh discovers him getting head in his convertible by a boy ten years his junior. Distraught and cynical following the break-up, Josh agrees to allow his friend to set him up on ten dates, all of which have their comical unpleasantries, not to mention the life affirming events that come to occur.

If you can get over the grainy, seemingly untreated film quality (and if you’re a tad bit towards the right, your own insecurities), there’s a great movie to enjoy inside the packaging of 10 Attitudes. While a couple jokes occasionally fall flat, theres more than enough subtle, improvised hilarity to make up for the slip-ups. David Faustino of “Married With Children” fame even makes a tremendous appearance as one of the eccentric men that he “dates,” only to be dealt a proposal that Josh just cant handle.

I’m not entirely too big on the bully flashback, and how that played into the film, but I’m sure that this was partly thrown in to appeal to the majority audience (I wonder?). The fact that Josh’s teenage self had the exact same haircut and face structure as I did in my middle school years, along with the manner of dress, was just too much to handle for a brief moments as well.
10 Attitudes has plenty of moments that warrant a watch.

DVD: Included are three minutes of outtakes, a very informative Behind the Scenes featurette that runs about twenty-two minutes, three minutes of half-naked men that I reasonably skipped, and three other quick and interesting features.

This not is not intended as a knock to A Time For Dancing, which is a more than acceptable coming of age story, but the poor girl still deserves better. Her performances in fare like “The Secret World of Alex Mack,” 100 Girls, and 10 Things I Hate About You showed that she truly does deserve to be spending her time consistently making theatrical films.

Nonetheless, Oleynik pulls out a great performance in a movie that looks and feels a lot like A Walk to Remember. Based off of a book by the same name, A Time For Dancing takes a different route than how you think it will. Oleynik plays Juliana, an overachieving ballerina who so feels the need to get into the Julliard School for Ballet that she willingly dumps her boyfriend in order to better her focus. Along for the ride is a self-admitted tag along named Sam (the great Appleby), who appears to have major self esteem issues. All her life she has done nothing but try to be like Juliana.

But when Juliana discovers she must go through chemotherapy for diffuse histiocytic lymphoma, things take a turn for the worst. We see Juliana go through the wrenching struggles of losing her hair, recognizing immenent death, and trying to achieve her one life goal. Definitely sounds a lot like A Walk to Remember. But it shows how different it is when the story shifts to narrator Sam. She finally realizes her own self worth through everything that her and her friends go through. The story hits its peak here.

Shane West and Peter Coyote, both of whom played nearly exact roles in A Walk to Remember, are here as well to further the resemblance.

Two years ago, I actually shed a tear while watching A Walk to Remember. A Time For Dancing didn’t make me do the same, and it is guilty of being a tad bit slow at points, but that does not it’s not one of the more powerful direct-to-video films I’ve seen in recent memroy.